Nancy coughed, and then she cleared her throat. She flapped her hands again. ‘Oh, you know this and that with getting the drinks ready.’
‘This and that? Anything in particular?’
‘Umm.’
‘Will the lighthouse be open?’
‘No! No, no, no. That won’t be open. Not at all.’
‘I assumed that’s why it’s a busy one this time because everyone loves going up there.’
‘Just general help. Yes, that’s itgeneralhelp.’ Nancy clarified.
Nina repeated Nancy’s words with a lilted question at the end. ‘General help?’
‘Yup. Exactly.’
‘So what time will you need me there for thisgeneralhelp?’ Nina put her fingers in the air to mimic quotation marks around the word general.
‘Like I don’t know, six?’
Nina wrinkled her nose. ‘Won’t everything have been done by then?’
‘Not this time, no.’
Nina regarded Nancy with a tilt of her head. ‘Six seems a bit late for setup, doesn't it? Usually, these things are done in the afternoon. You always say early worm and all that.’
Nancy fidgeted with the hem of her shirt. ‘Well, yes, usually. But this time, it's different. Some last-minute changes, you know how it is.’
Nina raised an eyebrow. ‘Last-minute changes? That's unlike you. You're always so organised where the Drinks are concerned.’
Nancy took a deep breath. ‘It's just been... hectic. With Birdie out of the picture suddenly, things got a bit scrambled.’
Nina crossed her arms, unconvinced. ‘But still, what exactly needs doing at six? The event starts at seven-thirty, doesn't it?’
Nancy nodded, her eyes darting around the room. ‘Yes, yes, it does. It's just some final touches I need doing. You know, making sure everything looks perfect.’
‘You're being vague. What's going on? You're not usually like this about it.’
Nancy sighed. ‘Okay, I’ll tell you some of it. It's just that there's this surprise element to the evening. I wanted to keep it under wraps, but it's causing more stress than I anticipated.’
‘A surprise? For the event? Who for?’
‘Yes. It's something special, but I can't really talk about it. I just need an extra pair of hands…’ Nancy soundedreallyagitated.
‘Okay, happy to help. Ooh, a surprise for someone. I can’t wait to see who.’
Nancy swore. ‘I promised I wouldn’t tell anyone. It’s not a surprise for someone as such but a community surprise. Yes, that’s it. Sorry, it needs to stay a secret from everyone. Including you, I'm afraid.’
Nina nodded slowly. ‘Not a problem. I’ll keep schtum. A community surprise, eh?’
‘Yes, yes, that’s it. It's going to be a great evening.’
‘I’m sure. Now is there anything else you can share about this 'general help' I'll be providing?’ Nina chuckled.
Nancy hesitated for a moment, and then she was definitely cagey. ‘Nope, not really. Just the usual.’
Nina laughed. ‘Sounds allverymysterious. But alright, I'm in. I'll see you there at six.’
